Type-2 Diabetes & Weight Loss

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         United States:  Number of Type-2 Diabetics

             2015 – 1 in 10 American Adults (30.3 million)

             2050 – 1 in 3 Adults

             Another 84.1 million adults, over 1 in 3, have Pre-Diabetes

          Complicating Factors of Diabetes

             · 1 out of 3 diabetics have documented heart disease

             · Diabetics are 4 times more likely to die from heart disease

             · Deaths due to stroke were 3-4 times higher in diabetics

             · Diabetics are at 4 times more at risk for dementia

             · Diabetes is the leading cause of high blood pressure

             · It’s the leading cause of liver failure due to non-alcoholic fatty liver

             · Diabetes contributes to depression & mood disorders

                                                                                                                  CDC.gov/Factsheet

Myth 1: Diabetes is Genetic

Type-2 diabetes, in truth, is almost entirely induced by environmental and lifestyle factors. While there are some predisposing genes, they are turned on or expressed by conditions of poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, stress, and exposure to environmental toxins.

Myth 2: Diabetes Is Not Reversible

There is clear evidence from scientific literature that type-2 diabetes is reversible, especially if it is caught in the early stages and treated aggressively through lifestyle intervention and nutritional support, and occasionally with medications.  Even most later-stage diabetes can be reversed with very intensive lifestyle changes, medications, and supplements.

Myth 3: Pre-Diabetes Isn’t a Problem Until It Turns Into Full-blown Diabetes

Pre-Diabetes is NOT “Pre“ anything! It is a deadly disease driving our biggest Killers – Heart attacks, Strokes, Cancer, Dementia, and More. Pre-Diabetes can cause impotence in men and infertility in women (also can be related to Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome).

Myth 4: Once You Start On Insulin, There Is No Going Back

The good news is that, with aggressive lifestyle intervention and dietary changes, you can reverse type-2 diabetes and stop insulin therapy under your doctor’s supervision.

Myth 5: Lowering Blood Sugar with Medication Prevents Death and Heart Attacks

We have to give up on the hope for the magic pill that will fix our problems. Remember, changing the numbers of our lab tests doesn’t treat the underlying cause of the diabetes. The threat of death and heart attack are still present.

Myth 6: Heart Surgery and Angioplasty Are Good Treatments for Diabetics with Heart Disease

New England Journal of Medicine showed that surgery and angioplasty for diabetics with heart disease work no better than medication in reducing heart attacks and death, and have higher risks.

Myth 7: Weight Loss is Necessary for The Reversal of Diabetes

All the parameters such as high blood sugar, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, inflammation, and clotting are dramatically reduced even without significant weight loss because of the rapid effects of dietary changes that control which genes get turned on or off. The quality of the food we put in our bodies drives our gene function, metabolism, and health. It is not simply a matter of your weight, or calories in/calories out.

You will lose weight, by getting your systems in balance, not by starving yourself.

                                                                                                                       Mark Hyman, MD 

     Due to a regular diet of sugars in the form of liquid calories, refined carbohydrates, and trans-fats your cells slowly become resistant or numb to the effects of insulin. Requiring more and more of it to keep your blood sugar level balanced.

     High levels of insulin tell your body to gain weight around the belly. The fat storage hormone, insulin, also drives more inflammation and oxidative stress causing increases in blood pressure, cholesterol, and triglycerides. High and persistent levels of insulin can also lead to decreased levels of HDL (good cholesterol), a lowered sex drive and fertility rate, thickening of blood, along with increasing your risk of cancer and Alzheimer’s and depression.  Most experts agree that insulin resistance (IR) is the underlying cause of our epidemic of obesity and type-2 diabetes in America. 

     IR and the lifestyles diseases that result from it can be prevented, treated, and reversed; but new and “better” drugs or surgeries are not the solution. 

We must focus on what causes the underlying imbalance in our body that results in chronic diseases. This new approach to healing, the cause of the body’s imbalances, is called Functional Healthcare. 

Insulin Resistance Symptoms/Signs

INITIAL: 

Hypoglycemia

Confusion, orthostatic hypotension, fatigue, excessive hunger, loss of consciousness, seizures, shakiness, nervousness, dizziness, behavioral changes, headaches…

Reactive Hypoglycemia (1st Stage of Insulin Resistance)

· Low Blood pressure; less than 110/70 mmhg

· Orthostatic hypotension

· Cranial nerve deficits (Pharyngeal arches, dizziness, imbalances…)

ADVANCED:

- Constant hunger, inability to lose weight, craving sugar 

- Fatigue after meals, migrating aches/pains, upper abdominal obesity, 

increased body fat, awakened to urinate

CHRONIC INSULIN RESISTANCE (Leads To):

- Hormone imbalance; PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome, facial hair, 

infertility), Estrogen dominance => Cancers, ovarian cysts; hypothyroidism

- High cholesterol and triglycerides

OTHER SIGNS & SYMPTOMS

Clinical Signs:    

- Wide/Enlarged tongue

- Skin tags on neck and axilla

- Acanthosis Nigricans: Dark striae on neck and axilla

- Fat that gathers in the triceps region

- Central obesity of the abdomen

- Can’t lose weight or gain muscle

- Weak immune system (colds/flu)

- Cherry hemangiomas (estrogen deposits)

- Insomnia

- Depression

- Inflammation

- Bloating/gas

- Elevated insulin levels

- Elevated blood pressure

- Elevated cholesterol and triglycerides